So after I posted the link to Destructoid giving Ghost Recon: Wildlands a fucking brutal 2.5/10, it got me actually rather curious to see if the game was really a stinking heap of shit. Most other review sites seem to be giving the game between 6 and 7.5 so somethign had to have gone completely wrong for Destructoid.
It just so happened that I got a couple hours to try the game for free on Xbone over the weekend at a local gaming cafe, and I thought I would share my first impressions with you guys.
Plot twist. I actually had a pretty good time with it. So much so that I went I bought the game for myself to play more of it.
So the game starts you right in the thick of the most Ubisoft of open worlds. Question marks, collectibles, missions, activities, bonus objectives, just a total playground of shit to do. All of this comes with the blanket premise of basically toppling a drug cartel in South America. And it was really fun. I just ran around and did a couple of side things, stumbling into this story about two doctors that joined the cartel because of a knack and joy for torture.
The game does a good job in just a couple of audio logs and a short cut scene really making you hate these two "doctors". I was actually rather impressed on how quickly the game made me WANT to take the sick bastards down. Which is unique for an open world game, and extremely unique for an Ubisoft game.
I will say the controls are a bit fucky though. The layout is really unituitive and it took me a while to get used to it, and after the couple of hours I was still hitting buttons that I brain and gamer training told me should be one thing, but actually did something else. I imagine that would go away after some more time with the game, but it did cause me some frustrations at first.
So yeah, I had fun with what I played of it. Not that I think it is a great game, but I could easily see it getting a 7 from me, though I would have to play way more of the game to make that call. It could go crazy downhill a few more hours into it. Or it could go way uphill. Who knows.
Oh.....I also stole a fucking plane and killed the people guarding it by cutting them up with the propeller, then I delivered the plane to rebels for a ton of points. That was awesome.
Speaking of points. I love that the resources you gather (food, fuel, ammo, etc) all can be stored and applies to specific types of upgrades for your character. Because it is a Ubisoft game, every mechanic from anything that was ever popular is in this game, so of course there are RPg elements where you gain skill points to unlock skills and generally improve your character. But I like that you gather point organically as you do things, grab collectibles, even grab raw skill points lying around. You don't actually need skill points, they give you utility things, longer sprint, steadier aim, etc. These bonuses just make your character better on top of you getting better at the game. Which I liked.
Anyway I look forward to playing more of this game. Sadly I dunno when Ill get a chance at another full review as I have a ton of huge games on my desk. Yakuza 0, Every Kingdom Heart game (a series I never played), Persona, Wildlands, Mass Effect (still). God this year is fucking bonkers.
It just so happened that I got a couple hours to try the game for free on Xbone over the weekend at a local gaming cafe, and I thought I would share my first impressions with you guys.
Plot twist. I actually had a pretty good time with it. So much so that I went I bought the game for myself to play more of it.
So the game starts you right in the thick of the most Ubisoft of open worlds. Question marks, collectibles, missions, activities, bonus objectives, just a total playground of shit to do. All of this comes with the blanket premise of basically toppling a drug cartel in South America. And it was really fun. I just ran around and did a couple of side things, stumbling into this story about two doctors that joined the cartel because of a knack and joy for torture.
The game does a good job in just a couple of audio logs and a short cut scene really making you hate these two "doctors". I was actually rather impressed on how quickly the game made me WANT to take the sick bastards down. Which is unique for an open world game, and extremely unique for an Ubisoft game.
I will say the controls are a bit fucky though. The layout is really unituitive and it took me a while to get used to it, and after the couple of hours I was still hitting buttons that I brain and gamer training told me should be one thing, but actually did something else. I imagine that would go away after some more time with the game, but it did cause me some frustrations at first.
So yeah, I had fun with what I played of it. Not that I think it is a great game, but I could easily see it getting a 7 from me, though I would have to play way more of the game to make that call. It could go crazy downhill a few more hours into it. Or it could go way uphill. Who knows.
Oh.....I also stole a fucking plane and killed the people guarding it by cutting them up with the propeller, then I delivered the plane to rebels for a ton of points. That was awesome.
Speaking of points. I love that the resources you gather (food, fuel, ammo, etc) all can be stored and applies to specific types of upgrades for your character. Because it is a Ubisoft game, every mechanic from anything that was ever popular is in this game, so of course there are RPg elements where you gain skill points to unlock skills and generally improve your character. But I like that you gather point organically as you do things, grab collectibles, even grab raw skill points lying around. You don't actually need skill points, they give you utility things, longer sprint, steadier aim, etc. These bonuses just make your character better on top of you getting better at the game. Which I liked.
Anyway I look forward to playing more of this game. Sadly I dunno when Ill get a chance at another full review as I have a ton of huge games on my desk. Yakuza 0, Every Kingdom Heart game (a series I never played), Persona, Wildlands, Mass Effect (still). God this year is fucking bonkers.
